Yup, Looks Like It’s Mostly Overworked Bloggers Who Use Google Reader

Still, 80 percent use the service for work AND play!

As part of its quest to build the perfect Google Reader replacement, Digg is surveying 17,000 people about how they used the service. With 8,000 responses already in, Digg has released some insight into what they’ve found.

The numbers don’t do much to contradict the idea that people who really care are overworked bloggers.

For starters: 40 percent of respondents subscribed to more than 100 feeds, which makes sense. Readers are designed to deal with the proverbial fire hose of news, not a garden hose. 80 percent of respondents check the feed several times a day. (Refresh, refresh, gimme some news!) Digg concludes:

“There is no doubt about it — this is a product for power users, and we’ll need to make sure we have some serious infrastructure in place to support that kind of usage for launch.”

Still, there’s a chance for Digg to build something of more widespread appeal. More than 75 percent of respondents said they use their Reader for work and play. Work-life balance, achieved. And nearly 20 percent said they use it exclusively for play! (Those folks should probably reconsider how they use their leisure hours.)

In terms of features, Digg promises keyboard shortcuts, but won’t commit to a search button at launch, since 25 percent said they never used it. So far, Feedly is winning the Reader-replacement stakes, bumping up against 40 percent of respondents. Another 40 percent or so still haven’t moved to another platform, which Digg interprets as an opportunity.

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